Hello people,
I am by no means an expert on networking or the structure of current internet. However I, along with many other people, am aware of crappy service from pretty much every internet service provider. That's why community created fiber networks/ municipal isp concepts intrigue me so much.
Which brings me to my question, what is really involved in starting ones own ISP or connecting people to the internet?
Can we, as a collection of disgruntled customers, start something of our own?
Can the requirements of local hardware/infrastructure be reduced in innovative ways?
Is there an option which does not involve wholesale connectivity purchase from a middleman?
Can we streamline the process?
Please excuse my ignorance and disregard this post if you think it is stupid. Thanks.
well im sure its possible, id go to your local goverment and ask. id want to se what Wendell would say though
A local DSL company in my area started with just there local neighborhood and slowly grabbed permission per block. You need permission from your neighborhood association with a council member. Then you have to put up the connection costs and collect fees. It gets messy really fast its not the technology that slows the projects its all the legal hoops you would have to try to jump through.
Here in New Zealand. You have three different levels (Talking fiber). First you have the root ISP's. They own the network and wholesale it. They are subsidized by the government and have to maintain and improve the network. They have monopolies in their areas and has already shown to be a problem in some areas (One city you can get 100mbit max but 100km's away in the next region owned by a different company you can get 1,000mbit)
Next you have the big brand ISP's. They buy the wholesale connection and provide 95% of the countries internet. They also provide access to the wholesale market. So small companies can provide their own ISP including personalized plans. However the larger ISP clips the ticket on the way through.
Now there is the copper network which is a free for all but thats a mess and slowly being replaced.
So in NZ, yes you can setup your own ISP, Because you can purchase internet access wholesale through different avenues. Other countries like America. You havent got a chance.